Not resolutions, Context

I don't make New Year's resolutions. They make things worse. 

For instance, you resolve on January 1 that you will lose 10 lbs.  Then you only make it to 9 and feel like a failure. Therefore you give up altogether and put the weight back on.

So what do I do instead? I make a context for the year. That means I find something to be my north star. If I keep my context in mind I can reorient my life when I get off track. That means that when I lose my way I make a course correction rather than beat myself up as a failure.

You can use a quote, a passage from the holy book of your choice, or even just a word. For instance you could use the word "JOY". If something doesn't bring you joy, get rid of it. If someone tries to steal your joy, keep them at a distance or shun them altogether--or better yet, share your joy with them. Write it in big letters on your mirror, your dash board, your desk at work. Repeat it often.

At the end of the year recount all the joyful things from the year. Think about how much joy you found.

Much better than being 10 lbs lighter.

Christmas Novena, Day Nine

It's Christmas Eve and I'm headed to Midnight Mass. In our hustling to get ready for Christmas Day it is easy to forget that we should welcome the stranger, visit the prisoner, shelter the homeless, and feed the poor. The  last month was a blur of shopping, decorating, and parties for many. This melancholy song by the Everly Brothers should help us remember those who are lonely and forgotten in the cold tonight.

Oh, God forgive the man that drives right by the other man
Take pity on the stranger in the cold
Cause Christmas eve can kill you
When you're tryin' to hitch a ride to anywhere

Christmas Novena, Day Eight

Today is the Sunday before Nativity, so I give you the "Kontakion of the Forefeast", which is sung in Eastern Christian Churches today. In 2001 I was tonsured a Reader in the Antiochian Orthodox Church, so today is a special celebration for me.

This version by Glockenbass is a bit weirder than what you'll hear in your local Byzantine Church.



Here's a normal version sung by Fr. Apostolos Hill:

Christmas Novena, Day Seven

Sufjan Stevens makes a Christmas album every year. Some songs are traditional carols and some are original. This one is about the Christmas Unicorn who embodies everything that Christmas was, is, and could be.

But I’ve seen others in the uniform
Of a unicorn just like me
We are legions wide and we chose no sides
We are masters of mystique



 

Christmas Novena, Day Six

During my childhood the music of the Carpenters echoed regularly from my Dad's stereo, especially at Christmas time. When I came across this dub reggae version of "Sleigh Ride" I nearly wet myself.

Christmas Novena, Day Five

From one of my favorite Christmas albums comes this haunting version of the creepiest Christmas carol ever: "Down in Yon Forest". It dates back to the Renaissance, and Bruce Cockburn does a good job of keeping that minstrel mood.

"Under that bed there runs a flood... 
 The one half runs water, the other runs blood."

Christmas Novena, Day Four

Have you ever had a Christmas that really sucked? I doubt it was as bad as "Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant" by the Diamond Rugs, sung here by band member John McCauley. This is a response to yesterday's post--sometimes you have a right to be cynical at Christmas.

Christmas Novena, Day Three

For many people the month leading up to Christmas. You get stuck attending parties with people you don't like and giving meaningless obligatory presents to relative strangers. A far cry from the time of expectation that Advent should be and the joyous festival that follows December 25th for 40 days.

No wonder some people hate this time of year. For today's song I chose "It's Cliched to be Cynical at Christmas" by Half Man Half Biscuit.

See how we yawn
At your bile and your scorn
It’s a beautiful day
Peace on Earth has been played
Make a noise with your toys
And ignore the killjoys
‘Cos it’s cliched
To be cynical
At Christmas

Christmas Novena, Day Two

Starting today, December 17th through the 12th, it is a tradition to sing the "O Antiphons". On the Vespers before Christmas they are all sung together. This is where the chant "Veni, Veni Emmanuel" comes from, but you probably know it as "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" from the 19th century translation by John Mason Neale. 

U2 decided to borrow the melody for their song "White as Snow", which is my song for Day two of my Christmas Novena. The character singing the song is a dying soldier serving in Afghanistan and apparently the length of the song is the time it takes him to die. 

It's not just the melody that makes this a song for Advent, but also the hope of finding "the lamb as white as snow". Traditionally there are four Advents: the coming of Christ in the flesh, the second coming of Christ at the end of the world, the coming of Christ into a person's heart, and the coming of Christ at the hour of death.

Christmas Novena, Day One

Well, it's nine days until Christmas and I haven't posted on this blog in a while. So, I got an idea to post a Christmas video every day for the next nine days. Oh, but they won't be normal Christmas songs. This is how we prepare for the Feast of the Nativity in Vladimir's Universe.

The song for Day One is "Put a Straw Under Baby" by Brian Eno. Anyone who knows the tradition of preparing a place for Jesus by putting a straw in the manger for every good deed can understand why I consider this a Christmas song. I put it on the MP3 player I got my son for his first Christmas.